It had been a couple months since Amon had been defeated, and Republic City was in the process of picking itself up by its bootstraps. Everyone had a duty, a responsibility, to ensure that things got back to normal. Korra was busy being the face of peace and unification between benders and non benders. Mako was by her side, an ever present scowl underwritten with concern. It was his job to make sure that she didn't crumble under the pressure. Asami was slowly rebuilding Future Industries, and was amid talks with Cabbage Corp in a bid to salvage what little was left of her family's good name. Tenzin, with the help of Commander Bumi and General Iroh, were reestablishing the Council, and with it, order. Lin, with her bending now restored, was cracking down on the last remaining pockets of Equalists, and actively recruiting new metal benders to help bolster the police force.
As for Bolin, he was trying to get the pro bending arena back up to snuff, rounding up investors and trying to cobble what few pro benders remained in the city back into teams. It was slow going, what with how spooked most people were nowadays. Most of the pro benders had fled the city, fearing Amon, and most of the people in a position to be investors were leery of stirring up any latent anti bender sentiment. Undaunted, Bolin threw himself into his personal mission whole heartedly, unwilling to let himself sit idly by while everyone else contributed to the recovery effort. At least, that's what he told anyone who asked. In all honesty, with everything finally calming down, all that had actually happened was beginning to catch up with him. It first started when he swore he saw someone following him in the market. No matter how quickly he walked, how many turns he took, the figure was still there, his eerily familiar white face twisting into a cruel grin and hollow black eyes following Bolin's every panicked move. Terror finally getting the better of him, Bolin bolted back to the island, sure that Amon was alive and ready to seek vengeance.
He never told anyone about that incident, and things just kept getting worse. He could barely sleep more than a couple hours each night, waking up swearing that his bending was gone. His eyes were becoming increasingly bloodshot, the rings around them as black as his hair. He was easily startled, and often couldn't sit still for longer than a few minutes, needing movement to hide his nerve induced shaking. Not that he let anyone see any of this, of course. Everyone had their own issues to deal with, and he wasn't about to burden anyone with his silly nightmares. Everyone else was so strong, even the airbender kids. They'd met Amon face to face, like he had, and they seemed fine, more so than he did at any rate. No, he wouldn't tell anyone about how poorly he was coping with this whole Equalist thing. He was sure it'd go away eventually.
That was a month ago, and the nightmares were just as frequent, just as terrifying. He could barely sleep, that hollow white face and dead black eyes following him where ever he went. He took to sleeping pills and copious amounts of drink to lull himself to sleep, only to jolt awake an hour or so later, drenched in sweat and panting. It was a nightly occurrence, and quite frankly, he was growing sick of it and his weakness.
Sitting up in bed, he cradled his head in his hands. It had been a bad one this time, and he knew that there was no way he was going back to sleep. With a sigh, he swung his legs over the side and lurched towards the door. He knew that no one was going to be up and about in these early dawn hours, a fact that a small part of him reveled in. He wouldn't have to dodge any prying questions or any equally prying glances; he'd be able to relax and not worry about having to hide his fear and exhaustion behind an ever thinning jokester guise. Shuffling out of the men's dormitory and into the weak sunlight, he breathed in deeply before setting off to the meditation pagoda. He'd seen Tenzin and the kids meditating there, and had often considered joining them, but never had. The trail to the pagoda was lined with trees, the branches swaying slightly in the breeze coming off of Yue Bay. Breaking through the tree line, Bolin caught sight of the head and shoulders of someone already sitting in the pagoda, back facing the path.
Stumbling to a slight halt, surprised, Bolin paused for a moment before beginning his retreat back into the trees, hoping that Iroh hadn't seen him skulk out of the forest in nothing more than a tank top and shorts. Just before he disappeared into the shade, a clear voice rang out, stopping him in his tracks.
"Bolin, two can meditate at the same time." Iroh hadn't turned or moved to indicate that he knew the earthbender was there, but yet, he somehow knew. Unsure, Bolin stood still, watching the general. A moment passed before Iroh turned his head slightly, and patted the space next to him; an invitation. Without waiting for an answer, Iroh turned back towards the bay, leaving Bolin standing there, in the early morning light, debating on whether he should meditate with the general. This wasn't what he had in mind when he had set out this morning, looking for a secluded spot to try and quiet his demons, no sir, not at all. But here he was, unsure if he should try and calm his troubled mind, albeit with company, or try and suffer through another day of fear and exhaustion.
Another beat passed before Bolin quietly mounted the stairs and plopped down next to the general, whose eyes were closed and looked for the world as if he wasn't aware that Bolin was even there. With a slight exhalation, eyes still closed, Iroh turned a fraction towards Bolin.
"Something troubling you?" Bolin froze at those three words, more a statement than a question, really. Iroh knew. He must know. He must see how badly Bolin was dealing with all this, how tired he was when he joined everyone at breakfast in the morning. He couldn't have missed how little Bolin was actually eating. Perhaps he'd even seen all the empty bottles Bolin made sure to toss when he thought no one was around. A cold sinking feeling hit Bolin square in the sternum.
"How did you know?" He inwardly flinched at how hollow and defeated he sounded, his voice nothing like his usual boisterous self. Iroh's eyes cracked open, regarding the young man next to him, really seeing the shadows beneath his eyes and the dull gaze that refused to hold his own for the first time. He'd had an inkling that something was troubling the man, but it was startling to see how run down he was when his barriers were down. Without answering, Iroh leaned forward and grabbed a small porcelain cup that was sitting next to its partner and a steaming teapot. Pouring some tea, he handed the cup to Bolin before grabbing his own and reheating it, taking a sip.
"A great man once said that tea can soothe any and all aches, if only we open ourselves up and let it work its magic." Bolin stared at the tea for a breath before taking a tentative sip, his attention never leaving Iroh, who was smiling serenely.
"There are many things in life that will trouble us, Bolin. It is not a matter of whether or not they trouble us, but instead of how we handle ourselves in the face of our own fear." Taking another sip, Iroh turned fully to Bolin, regarding the man hiding behind his own cup, looking abashed at being so easily found out. "There is nothing shameful in being afraid, Bolin. Honor doesn't come from a lack of fear, but rather its mastery." The general put down his cup, a hand resting on Bolin's knee, where it remained as he once again turned towards the bay and closed his eyes. The warm weight of Iroh's hand on his knee was unexpectedly comforting, and Bolin tentatively placed his atop the general's before closing his own eyes and, for once, found himself calm.
Take a look at the awesome fan art that pyromaniac03 did for this fic (remove the spaces, of course) at browse. deviantart ?qh=& section=& q=iroh+bolin+ tea+comfort# /d57tc9m